The Proposal
by tomoyamisuru
Summary: Today, today is very special day. It's Petra's birthday, and even though Levi is sure she'll like what he got for her, he still has his doubts. A wedding ring means a lot, after all.


Silvery metal glinted slightly in the sunlight as Levi closed he door, the satisfying "click" of the lock resonating through the hazy morning air. The sky was a clear, dull blue, and a crisp wind ruffled the raven strands of his hair. Perfect. Perfect weather on her birthday, as always.

Levi wasn't usually one to think about things like the weather, but today, today was special. Tugging his scarf lazily around his neck, Levi trudged down the street, frowning in distaste at the sound of crying children.

Another thing Levi didn't usually do was walk past the local play park on the way to visit her; the sound of screaming, whining children would make anyone annoyed. But today, he did, purely because it was what she would've done. She would smile at the children as they passed, or waved. He remembers vaguely her giving them sweets one time. She always spoilt people with presents or smiles, him in particular. However, Levi smiled slightly. Today, he was going to spoil her.

He glanced at the bag in his hand containing her birthday present. He had been nervous about his choice, even though he knew she would smile happily and love it, regardless of what he bought. But still...

Unlike his walk there, the Underground was teeming with people, the stuffy air contrasting vividly with the crisp wind above it. He remembered the first time he had taken her on the Underground: after he had gotten over the surprise of her having never gone on it before.

"It's not that weird! I just never had the need to go on it before, I guess..." She flushed defensively.

Levi had swung his arm over her shoulders. "Whatever you say, princess. Now hurry the Hell up, unless you want us to miss the train." She had hurried all right.

He grinned at the memory. That had been, what, their third date? He could remember exactly what she had been wearing; it was so clear in his mind. The white blouse and matching swirly skirt, a small floral scarf swung tastefully over her shoulders. He hoped she would wear something similar today. The look suited her.

Six more stops.

He could almost picture how she might react today. She'd open the door, looking hurried and excited at the same time, a plume of black smoke billowing from the kitchen. Then she'd make up some excuse, something silly like "Oh! Levi, you're so early!" She'd babble, eyes flitting between him and the smoke. "Err...I just had a bit of a mix up, I left the chicken in for too long and-" But he wouldn't give her enough time to finish before he'd pull her in for a hug. He wouldn't be able to help it, after all. He hadn't quite saved up enough for a house of their own yet, but he was content with the small distance between them. Even if it was a couple of miles away, that was nothing compared to what it would've been if he had accepted that job offer a couple of months back. She had begged him to take it, of course, but Levi wasn't having any of it.

"But it's such a good opportunity! Look, Levi, I don't want to be the reason you can't go!"

"I'm not going to change my mind." He stared her down, eyes filled with steely resolution. She had then sighed as she stepped forward and winded her arms around his neck.

"Well, if you insist, but you're not going to come complaining to me later, okay?" She teased, as he winded his hands into her soft hair, leaning into her warmth. No way was he going to leave this behind because of a "job."

Abruptly, the train jolted, and Levi nearly dropped the present bag. Luckily, it was caught by a stranger opposite. The old man chuckled as Levi thanked him.

"Gift for your girlfriend, eh?"

"Something like that, yeah."

The old man wiggled his eyebrows, smirking. "Gonna pop the question anytime soon, son?"

Levi stared at him in surprise, and gestured to the bag. "Yes actually. Today."

The train grinded to a halt.

The wrinkled face broke into a smile, and he laughed loudly. "Well, good luck to you. I'll be rooting for yer!" He tilted his cap to Levi, and, still chuckling, got off the train.

"Thank yo-" Levi started to call, but the train had started again, and the man was lost in the crowd.

Would she say yes? Levi was pretty sure she would. She had always sighed in longing whenever they had passed a shop selling bridal wear.

"How lovely...Hey, Levi which dress would suit me best?"

She grinned at him mischievously.

"Huh?"

"You heard me! Go on, choose one!"

He had glanced over at the dresses. They were all too frilly, too fluffy, tacky jewels and embroidery adorning the hems and bust.

"None of them."

She punched him playfully. "No really, tell me."

"I just said, none of them."

"None at all?" She looked a bit disappointed and turned away to look at the dresses again. "I like them..."

Honestly. He pulled her round to face him, and planted a swift kiss on her lips.

"No. Your wedding dress will need to have flowers on it. I don't care where, but somewhere. Flowers suit you best." He had said all this in a bit of a rush. After all, who wouldn't be embarrassed after saying something as soppy as that?

She didn't seem to find it soppy though. She had kissed him back and grabbed his hand, pulling him past the array of tacky dresses.

"See! You can't escape that! Now you have to marry me!'

"Don't get too ahead of yourself." He tried to sound stern, but looking at her face flushed and happy and mischievous at the same time, any strictness in his tone dissipated instantly.

Just a few more stops now.

He wondered what wedding dress she would wear. Even though he said all that before, honestly, Levi didn't mind. Anything and everything would look beautiful on her.

Ugh, when did he start talking like that? He blamed her entirely.

Finally, the train came to a halt at his stop. Her stop. Taking a deep breath, he got off the train, and made for the exit.

The cool wind felt nice on his face after the stuffy underground, and it was a bit sunnier than before.

His heart was now racing in anticipation as he turned the corner, destination in sight.

What would she say? Would she like the ring he chose? Maybe she didn't want to get married yet, wanted to wait a little longer. All these thought ran through his head, but he brushed them aside. They weren't important. Her happiness was.

He took a final deep breath, and opened the wooden gate, his land lingering for a second on the rotting wood.

The only sound in the air was his boots crunching on dew-covered grass. The last few steps seemed like they lasted a lifetime.

And then he was there. Where she was. Where she would always be, yet, at the same time, where she never truly was in the first place.

He knelt down next to the gravestone. The newest gravestone, the polished marble shining the brightest in the churchyard.

"It's been a while." His voice rung out over the graveyard, echoing in nothing but his mind.

There was no response, obviously.

He sat down, placing his bag next to the hard stone, and unpacked it.

"As it's your birthday, I brought some extra things. It's a special day, after all. So firstly, I got some birthday cake. It's a must, isn't it? It's chocolate, because that's your favourite. Now for presents."

His hands fumbled slightly as he brought out the first gift.

"It's a scarf. That may seem boring, but I know you like them, right? I remember the one you wore on our date once. You looked adorable in it, so I got you another one. I should've really told you looked adorable at the time though. Oh well! That's not what matters today. Now the second present is-well, technically it's not here, but it's a wedding dress. Hanji designed it, and I sort of gave pointers. You know how it is with her. Wanted to add a ton of sequins and intricate embroidery, but I didn't let her get too carried away. It's actually a bit simple, but I still hope you'll like it. It has flowers on. I'm sure you'll look beautiful in it. No, I know you'll look beautiful in it."

"Now for the last thing. After the dress, you'll probably have guessed what it is it, huh?"

The bag was empty, save for the small blue box, lying alone in the corner. Levi picked it up, and opened it very carefully.

Perched in the white satin, a silver ring sparkled softly. The metal curved at the top, encasing two small stones, one blue and one white.

He plucked the ring out of the case, and shifted so that his knee was turned toward the gravestone.

"I know I'm short, irritable, violent, and hard to approach. I know that you're sunny, and warm, soft and kind. The complete opposite of me. But opposites attract, y'know? Which is why, I am asking you this."

He took a final, deep breath.

"Petra Ral, I am in love with you."

"Will you marry me?"

(Alas, the only reply Levi ever heard was the wind, as he clutched the cold ring that wanted to be worn, kneeling above the body that could never wear it)

* * *

><p><strong>AN This was very painful to write. If you want I could do another(separate) version with a cute, fluffy ending but I'm not sure. I kind of like this as it is. Besides, if I wanted to do a cute, fluffy version I would've done that in the first place.**

**As for the other pics I'm currently writing, "The Healing Process" and "A Slight Inconvenience", I'm so sorry I haven't updated! I've been very busy with school, and I've been very sick as well -.- But I hope that they can be updated(both of them) within the next 2-3 days. With extra long chapters because I feel really bad about it.**

**Also who got the thing with the ring colours? :3 **


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